Abstract: A nonwoven composite web suitable for use, after post-treatment with a wetting agent, as a battery separator is formed by a wet process on a papermaking machine. One nonwoven composite material is made from a furnish of polyolefin binder fibers and polyolefin staple fibers. The web coming off the papermaking machine is dried using infra-red dryers followed by heated dryer cans. After drying, the web is thermally bonded using heated calendar rolls. The polyolefin binder fibers melt as the web passes through the calendar rolls and thermally bond the polyolefin staple fibers of the web when the melted binder fiber material fuses upon cooling.

Abstract: A new beverage can opening tab for preventing insects from entering the interior of a beverage can through the beverage can opening. The inventive device includes a tab body with a seal opening portion, a mounting portion, a lifting portion, and at least one wing portion positioned adjacent the lifting portion. The mounting portion is mountable to the top lid of a beverage can such that the tab body is rotatable between an opening position and a covering position over the top lid. When the tab body is in the opening position, the seal opening portion is positioned adjacent the opening of the can so that the seal opening portion may be pivoted to open the frangible sealing member covering the opening on the top lid into the interior of the can. When the tab body is rotated to the covering position, the wing portion and the lifting portion are positioned over the opening to cover the opening in order to prevent insects from passing through the opening into the interior of can.

Abstract: A nonwoven composite web suitable for use as a battery separator is formed by a wet process on a papermaking machine. The nonwoven composite material is made from a furnish of nylon binder fibers and nylon staple fibers. The web coming off the papermaking machine is dried using infra-red dryers followed by heated dryer cans. After drying, the web is thermally bonded using heated calendar rolls. The nylon binder fibers melt as the web passes through the calendar rolls and thermally bond the nylon staple fibers of the web when the melted binder fiber material fuses upon cooling. The use of dryer cans to dry and partially bond the web eliminates the need for surfactant treatment to improve potassium hydroxide absorption.